India expect captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni to fire in the upcoming World T20 in the Caribbean.

The former champions are already without Virender Sehwag due to a shoulder injury, but Dhoni is second to none when it comes to striking the ball hard and clean.

The 28-year-old skipper is known for holding his nerve under pressure and winning matches from desperate situations with his power-hitting.

Leading Chennai Super Kings in a must-win Indian Premier League (IPL) match against Kings XI Punjab in Dharamshala recently, Dhoni proved why he was considered one of the best finishers in the game.

CSK needed 52 to win off the last 4 overs before the skipper guided his team to the semi-finals with an explosive 29-ball 54 not out, which included two sixes and five fours.

"It came right down to the wire, and hats off to the skipper for pulling it off," Chennai coach and former New Zealand skipper Stephen Fleming wrote in his newspaper column after the match.

"It was an emotional moment for him too, and he is typically such a calm character. MS Dhoni has had a quiet tournament and it was nice to see him get his confidence back.

"This was the last innings for him to deliver and he came good. I am happy for him and the team."

The burden of captaincy has not affected his batting, for he has led his team outstandingly well in all formats of the game.

India gained the number-one Test ranking in December last year under Dhoni, who has scored 356 runs in 20 Twenty20 internationals with a strike-rate of 105.95 since making his debut against South Africa in Johannesburg in 2006.

Dhoni will be keen to excel both as captain and batsman as his last World Twenty20 World Cup campaign ended in failure in England in 2009, when India unsuccessful to make it to the semi-finals.

Like record-breaking batsman Sachin Tendulkar and Sehwag, Dhoni likes to dominate bowlers with a wide range of strokes and can change the course of a match in a short time.

Dhoni's Indians face first-timers Afghanistan and South Africa in their first round group, with the top two advancing to the Super Eights round.

After first proving those who said he couldn't score runs in the T20 format wrong, Ganguly proceeded to baffle fans and critics alike by throwing himself about in the field with the alertness of a 20 year old. Dada, as he is lovingly known, had never made headlines for his fielding, but in a crucial match for the Kolkata Knight Riders against the Delhi Daredevils, he was brilliant in the field.

He was happy with the win, which saw KKR remain in strife for a semi-final spot. Throwing light on the team selection, Ganguly discovered that the decision to play Ajantha Mendis instead of Shane Bond was taken at the ground itself.

"It was a good game and it was good to win. It is always a difficult decision to leave Shane Bond out. I wasn't sure whom to play, Bond or Mendis, when we reached the ground. But then on seeing the wicket, I thought Mendis would do well. Even Iqbal Abdulla bowled well. He is a youngster and all time he gets an opportunity, he proves himself."

Sourav Ganguly praised Gautam Gambhir and Virender Sehwag, and said their wickets turned the match for KKR.

"I think we should have got 190 today. We're a bit stuck during the middle overs. Till the time Sehwag was around, I thought they were very much in the match. He is a champion batsman and when he bats, anything is possible. So Sehwag, along with Gambhir, kept them in the match. It was only when Sehwag was dismissed that we began to sense victory. Everyone thinks they know how to bowl to Sehwag but he keeps pumping them into the stands! He is a champion batsman. Both Sehwag and Gambhir are really fine players.

"We have been playing well for quite sometime now. Hopefully, we will be able to win the next match. Every time we win one, we lose the very next game."

Delhi skipper Gautam Gambhir gave credit to Kolkata for the win, and said that he should have ensured he stayed till the end to finish the match for Delhi. Gambhir was run-out by a direct hit via his opposite number, Sourav Ganguly.

Kolkata bowling coach, Wasim Akram was delighted with his wards' show in front of a packed Eden Garden and heaped praises on faster Ashok Dinda, who packed off the dangerous David Warner in the first over, and was denied another wicket when Sehwag nicked a ball behind to the keeper.

"I am very happy with the way he bowled. He runs in straightaway, right from the first ball. I have always maintained that there aren't any warm-up deliveries in this format and you need to warm up before the match, which is what he does."